A combined statistical model for multiple motifs search

Transcription factor binding sites (TFBS) play key roles in genebior 6.8 wavelet expression and regulation. They are short sequence segments with de¯nite structure and can be recognized by the corresponding transcription factors correctly. From the viewpoint of statistics, the candidates of TFBS should be quite di®erent from the segments that are randomly combined together by nucleotide. This paper proposes a combined statistical model for ¯nding over- represented short sequence segments in di®erent kinds of data set. While the over-represented short sequence segment is described by position weight matrix, the nucleotide distribution at most sites of the segment should be far from the background nucleotide distribution. The central idea of this approach is to search for such kind of signals. This algorithm is tested on 3 data sets, including binding sites data set of cyclic AMP receptor protein in E.coli, PlantProm DB which is a non-redundant collection of proximal promoter sequences from di®erent species, collection of the intergenic sequences of the whole genome of E.Coli. Even though the complexity of these three data sets is quite di®erent, the results show that this model is rather general and sensible.

稻属系统学若干问题的探讨

稻属（OryzaL．）是禾本科稻族(Oryzeae)中最大，也是分布最广的属，由于其包括亚洲栽培稻这一世界第一大粮食作物，对该属各方面的研究都相当多，系统与进化植物学研究也是如此。然而，由于该属分布跨及亚、非、美、澳各洲热带、亚热带地区，材料不易得到，故研究常缺乏系统性，属和属内一些种的界限仍然存在争议，属下组间特别是几个孤立类群间的系统发育关系也一直不很清楚，稻属与近缘类群间系统发育关系研究也很有限。为此，本文在以前学者研究的基础上，综合评述了目前稻属各分类系统，指出了目前普遍接受的观点和存在分歧，同时对稻属系统作了一些必要的修订;通过l7种野生稻的核型分析和通过原位杂交技术在稻属尝试性的应用，从染色体水平探讨了稻属与近缘类群间的关系以及稻属内物种间的关系;通过对lO个属28种稻族植物cp DNA上的trnK基因的限制性内切酶位点的分析，并综合其它证据，对稻属与近缘属间关系进行初步的探讨。主要的结论如下： 一、 17种野生稻核型研究表明： 1）所有种的间期核属染色中心型(chromocentertype)，染色中心较少或多，形状规则或不规则，散布于全核;前期染色体固缩特性属于近基型(proximal type)，2）Sect.Oryza所有种的核型很相似，均为n=5m+5sm+2t，其中第四对和第十对为st染色体，第十对为随体染色体，Sect. Brachyantha和SeCt. Padia的核型与前者有一定的差异，表现在随体染色体的位置和染色体的大小。0. brachyantha的核型特点并不支持将该种置于Sect. Oryza的观点。 对携带BC和CD基因组的四个种的核型分析表明，其染色体组成并非是二倍体染色体组成的叠加，说明其形成后发生了二倍化的分化，综合各方面证据， 我们支持携带BC基因组的两个四倍体种属双系起源， 而携带CD基因组的四倍体之起源与亚洲携带C基因组的物种有关的观点。3）对国内8个居群的药用野生稻（0．officinalis）核型研究表明，所有居群均为二倍体，未发现以前学者所报道的四倍体类型。药用野生稻为一多型种，通过初步的形态学比较分析，我们认为斯里兰卡分布的根茎野生稻O.rhizomatis很可能是药用野生稻这一多型种适应于季节性干旱环境的一个生态型。4）以前学者认为稻属可能源于x一5的次级多倍化，我们不支持这一观点，从整个稻族所有属以及近缘的稻亚科其它三族的染色体基数来考虑，我们认为其祖先类群更可能的染色体基数为x-6。 二、原位杂交结果：1）确定了13个种的45s rDNA的位点数，其中所有携带A基因组的物种除亚洲栽培稻和O_ rufipogon之位点数有1和2的分化外，其余种皆为一个位点;B基因组也含一个位点，C基因组的两个种各含3个位点， BC基因组的两个种均具三个位点，E基因组含二个位点，携带CD基因组的稻种分别携带3和5个位点，其中位点有大小之分;2)利用C基因组作探针，B基因组作封阻DNA，在四倍体CD（O.latifolia）的染色体制片中确立了带C基因组的染色体。 三、用PCR-RFLP技术对稻族lO个属28个种的trnK基因的酶切位点变异进行了分析，发现：(1) trnK基因PCR扩增产物长度约为2575bp，没有明显的长度变异，l7种内切酶处理，共得到72个酶切位点，占整个trnk基因全长的13.98%，72个酶切位点中52个为突变位点，33个为信息位点，利用52个突变位点，构建了28个种的树系图。(2)分支分析表明，稻族的lO个属共分为两组，一组为O.ryza和Porteresia，一组为其余的8个属;该结果明显不同于经典的族内划分。根据稻族各属现在的分布格局，认为稻族是禾本科早期分化过程中产生的类群，由于生境的相似，趋同演化和网状进化事件可能比较频繁，稻族的亚族划分可能存在一些不合理的成分。Porteresia coarctata, Rhynchoryza subulata，Leersia perieri三种以前曾被置于稻属，根据分支图，后两种位于分枝图的第二支，与稻属各种分化较大，而P．coarctata与稻属聚在一起，说明两者在锻汰基因的变异式样是相似的。综合各方面资料，我们认为P. coarctata可能是稻属适应于海滩耐盐环境的一个特化的类群。 (3)稻属的Sect. Oryza所包括的两个系Ser.Oryza与Ser.Latifolia仅在一个酶切位点上有差异，说明其间关系非常密切，Sect. Padia中的两个系Ser. Meyerianae和Ser.Ridleyianae与Sect.Oryza所包括的两个系Ser. Oryza与Ser. Latifolia有明显分化，两个孤立类群O brachytrntha f770．scl71echteri与Ser. Ridleyi聚在一起。 这一结果与Vaughan(1994)将两孤立种和O.ridteyi复合体同置于其系统中的Sect. Ridleyanae是吻合的。

Diversity and evolution of MicroRNA gene clusters

microRNA (miRNA) gene clusters are a group of miRNA genes clustered within a proximal distance on a chromosome. Although a large number of miRNA clusters have been uncovered in animal and plant genomes, the functional consequences of this arrangement are

The identification and quantification of highly stable 'common hairpin' in the dynamic process of co-transcriptional mRNA folding

In our studies, 88 human mRNA samples were collected from the Integrated Sequence-Structure database and then the dynamic process in co-transcriptional mRNA folding was simulated using the RNAstructure version 4.1 program. Through statistical analyses of the frequencies of occurrence of hairpins, a group of special folding structures-the 'common hairpins'-were identified. These 'common hairpins' have lower energies and occur in all the subsequent folding units that formed in the dynamic folding process. By applying the formulas (1)-(4) of the 'common hairpins' statistical model, 163 'common hairpins' were found, to make up about 7% of the total of 2286 hairpins. Classified studies further show that the 'common hairpins' that were studied may oscillate in the dynamic folding process. However, the hairpin loops of the 'common hairpins' and stems proximal to those 'common hairpins' loops maintain topologically stable structures, while other loops and stems distal to the 'common hairpins' loops are shown to be alterable structures. Strikingly, further studies indicate that the stable structures of these 'common hairpins' may have unbeknown effects on controlling the formation of protein structures in the translation process (unpublished results). (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Antimicrobial activity-specific to Gram-negative bacteria and immune modulation-mediated NF-kappa B and Sp1 of a medaka beta-defensin

Defensins are a group of cationic antimicrobial peptides which play an important role in the innate immune system by exerting their antimicrobial activity against pathogens. In this study, we cloned a novel beta-defensin cDNA from medaka (Oryzias latipes) by rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) technique. The full-length cDNA consists of 480 bp, and the open reading frame (CRF) of 189 bp encodes a polypeptide of 63 amino acids (aa) with a predicted molecular weight of 7.44 kDa. Its genomic organization was analyzed, and Southern blot detection confirmed that only one copy of beta-defensin exists in the medaka HNI strain. RT-PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemistry detections showed that the beta-defensin transcript and protein could be detected in eyes, liver, kidney, blood, spleen and gill, and obviously prevalent expression was found in eyes. Antimicrobial activity of the medaka beta-defensin was evaluated, and the antibacterial activity-specific to Gram-negative bacteria was revealed. Furthermore, the lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a major component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, was demonstrated to be able to induce about 13-fol up-regulation of the beta-defensin within first 12 h. In addition, promoter and promoter mutagenesis analysis were performed in the medaka beta-defensin. A proximal 100 base pair(bp) sequence (+26 to -73)and the next 1700 bp sequence (-73 to -1755) were demonstrated to be responsible for the basal promoter activity and for the transcription regulation. Three nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) cis-elements and a Sp1 cis-element were revealed by mutagenesis analysis to exist in the 5' flanking sequence, and they were confirmed to be responsible for the up-regulation of medaka beta-defensin stimulated by LPS. And, the Sp1 cis-element was further revealed to be related to the basal promoter activity, and transcriptional factor II D (TFIID) was found to be in charge of the gene transcription initiation. All the obtained data suggested that the novel medaka beta-defensin should have antimicrobial activity-specific to Gram-negative bacteria, and the antibacterial immune function should be modulated by NF-kappa B and Sp1. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Molecular identification and expression analysis of tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 2 in grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella

Tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 2 (TRAF2) is a crucial component of almost the entire tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily signaling pathway. In the present study, a TRAF2 gene has been cloned from grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and rapid amplification of cDNA ends. The full-length cDNA is 3162 bp, including a 60 bp 5' untranslated region (UTR), a 1611 bp open reading frame, and a 1491 bp 3' UTR. The polyadenylation signal (AATAAA) and the mRNA instability motifs (ATTTTA, ATTTA) were followed by a poly(A) tail in the 3' UTR. No signal peptide or transmembrane region has been found in the putative amino acids of grass carp TRAF2 (gcTRAF2). Phylogenetic tree analysis clearly showed that gcTRAF2 is nearest to the TRAF2 gene of goldfish. The identity of gcTRAF2 with its homologs in other vertebrates ranges from 56% to 97%. It is characterized by one RING-type signature at the N-terminus, one zinc finger in the middle part, and one conserved TRAF domain consisting of a C-proximal (TRAF-C) subdomain and a N-proximal (TRAF-N) subdomain. The identity of TRAF-C among all TRAF2 homologs in vertebrates varies from 78% to 97%, whereas the identity of TRAF-N ranges from 56% to 100%. The recombinant gcTRAF2 has been expressed in Escherichia coli using pET-32a expression vector. The rabbit anti-gcTRAF2 polyclonal antibody was obtained. The expression of gcTRAF2 in different organs was examined by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis. It was widely distributed in heart, head kidney, thymus, brain, gill, liver, spleen, and trunk kidney. This is the first report of a TRAF2 homolog molecule in fish.

Redescription of Nais inflata Liang (Annelida : Oligochaeta) from China

Nais inflata Liang 1963 is redescribed on the basis of fully mature specimens collected from several localities of the Yangtze River and Yellow River. The observations and redescription resulting from the study of mature specimens supports N. inflata as a valid species. This species is characterized by a thickened body, the ventral crotchets all of the same type with distal tooth usually longer than proximal one, a greater number of dorsal chaetae per bundle, stout dorsal needles with equal minute bifid teeth (<1 mu m), presence of penial chaetae, and prostate glands on vasa deferentia instead of atria. The species is most closely related to N. communis Piguet, 1906 and N. variabilis Piguet, 1906. A table comparing allied species is provided.

Spatial variability in water quality and surface sediment diatom assemblages in a complex lake basin,lake of the woods,ontario,canada

Lake of the Woods (LOW) is an international waterbody spanning the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba, and the U.S. state of Minnesota. In recent years, there has been a perception that water quality has deteriorated in northern regions of the lake, with all increase in the frequency and intensity of toxin-producing cyanobacterial blooms. However, given the lack of long-term data these trends are difficult to verify. As a first step, we examine spatial and seasonal patterns in water quality in this highly complex lake on the Canadian Shield. Further, we examine surface sediment diatom assemblages across multiple sites to determine if they track within-take differences in environmental conditions. Our results show that there are significant spatial patterns in water quality in LOW. Principal Component Analysis divides the lake into three geographic zones based primarily on algal nutrients (i.e., total phosphorus, TP), with the highest concentrations at sites proximal to Rainy River. This variation is closely tracked by sedimentary diatom assemblages, with [TP] explaining 43% of the variation in diatom assemblages across sites. The close correlation between water quality and the surface sediment diatom record indicate that paleoecological models could be used to provide data on the relative importance of natural and anthropogenic sources of nutrients to the lake.

NMR-based metabonomic study on the subacute toxicity of aristolochic acid in rats

The subacute toxicity of aristolochic acid (AA) was investigated by H-1 NMR spectroscopic and pattern recognition (PR)-based metabonomic methods. Model toxins were used to enable comparisons of the urinary profiles from rats treated with known toxicants and AA at various time intervals. Urinary H-1 NMR spectra were data-processed and analyzed by pattern recognition method. The result of visual comparison of the spectra showed that AA caused a renal proximal tubular and papillary lesion and a slight hepatic impair. Pattern recognition analysis indicated that the renal proximal tubule lesion was the main damage induced by AA, and the renal toxicity induced by AA was a progressive course with the accumulation of dosage by monitoring the toxicological processes from onset, development and part-recovery. These results were also supported by the conventional clinical biochemical parameters.

Cloning and characterization of beta-carotene ketolase gene promoter in Haematococcus pluvialis

The unicellular green alga Haematococcus pluvialis accumulates a highly valuable ketocarotenoid, astaxanthin, under various environmental stresses. beta-carotene ketolase (BKT) plays a key role in astaxanthin biosynthesis in H. pluvialis. In this paper, an approximate 700 bp 5'-flanking region of the bkt gene containing a putative promoter was cloned through walking upstream. The results of the sequence analysis showed that this bkt 5'-flanking region might have cis-acting elements such as sterol regulatory element (SRE-1)-like motifs, the C-repeat/dehydration responsive element (DRE) and al-3 proximal element (APE)-like motifs, except for typical TATA and CCAAT boxes. The results of the P-galactosidase assay and the transient expression of lacZ driven by a series of sequential deletions revealed that a minimal promoter-like region might exist from -630 to -408 bp, and the highest promoter activity was observed to span the positions from -630 to -308 bp. The results of the site-directed mutagenesis of a C-repeat/DRE and two APE-like motifs in a promoter-like region (-630 to -308 bp) suggested that two APE-like motifs might be essential for transcriptional control of the bkt gene.

Molecular cloning and characterization of a catalase gene from Zhikong scallop Chlamys farreri

Catalase is one of the central enzymes involved in scavenging the high level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by degradation of hydrogen peroxide to oxygen and water. The full-length catalase cDNA of Zhikong scallop Chlamys farreri (denoted as CfCAT) was identified from hemocytes by expressed sequence tag (EST) and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) approaches. The nucleotide sequence of CfCAT cDNA consisted of 3146 bp with a 5' UTR of 103 bp, an unusually long 31 UTR of 1519 bp with a canonical polyadenylation signal sequence AATAAA and a potyA tail, and an open reading frame (ORF) of 1521 bp encoding a polypeptide of 507 amino acids with predicted molecular weight of 57.5 kDa. The deduced amino acid sequence of CfCAT has significant homology to catalases from animals, plants and bacteria. Several highly conserved motifs including the proximal heme-ligand signature sequence RLFSYNDTH, the proximal active site signature FNRERIPERVVHAKGGGA, and the three catalytic amino acid residues of His(72), Asn(145) and Tyr(355) were identified in the deduced amino acid sequence of CfCAT. The CfCAT was demonstrated to be a peroxisomal glycoprotein with two potential glycosylation sites and a peroxisome targeting signal of ANL that was consistent with human, mouse and rat catalases. The time-course expression of CfCAT in hemocytes was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. The expression of CfCAT increased gradually and reached the highest point at 12 h post-Vibrio infection, then recovered to the original level at 24 h. All these results indicate that CfCAT, a constitutive and inducible protein, is a member of the catalase family and is involved in the process against ROS in scallop. (c) 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Flux and fate of Yangtze river sediment delivered to the East China Sea

Numerous cores and dating show the Yangtze River has accumulated about 1.16 x 10(12) t sediment in its delta plain and proximal subaqueous delta during Holocene. High-resolution seismic profiling and coring in the southern East China Sea during 2003 and 2004 cruises has revealed an elongated (similar to 800 km) distal subaqueous mud wedge extending from the Yangtze River mouth southward off the Zhejiang and Fujian coasts into the Taiwan Strait. Overlying what appears to be a transgressive sand layer, this distal clinoform thins offshore, from similar to 40 in thickness between the 20 and 30 m water depth to < 1-2 in between 60 and 90 m water depth, corresponding to an across shelf distance of less than 100 km. Total volume of this distal mud wedge is about 4.5 x 10(11) m(3), equivalent to similar to 5.4 x 10(11) t of sediment. Most of the sediment in this mud wedge comes from the Yangtze River, with some input presumably coming from local smaller rivers. Thus, the total Yangtze-derived sediments accumulated in its deltaic system and East China Sea inner shelf have amounted to about 1.7 x 10(12) t. Preliminary analyses suggest this longshore and across-shelf transported clinoform mainly formed in the past 7000 yrs after postglacial sea level reached its mid-Holocene highstand, and after re-intensification of the Chinese longshore current system. Sedimentation accumulation apparently increased around 2000 yrs BP, reflecting the evolution of the Yangtze estuary and increased land erosion due to human activities, such as fanning and deforestation. The southward-flowing China Coastal Current, the northward-flowing Taiwan Warm Current, and the Kuroshio Current appear to have played critical roles in transporting and trapping most of Yangtze-derived materials in the inner shelf, and hence preventing the sediment escape into the deep ocean. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fucoidan inhibits the development of proteinuria in active Heymann nephritis

Fucoidan, the sulphated polysaccharide extracted from brown seaweed, has various biological activities. The effect of fucoidan on the formation of proteinuria and renal functions in active Heymann nephritis was investigated in this study. Active Heymann nephritis was induced by administering brush border protein of rat proximal uriniferous tubules (FX1A). Fucoidan was administered by oral intubation to Heymann nephritis rats at three doses (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) once daily for 4 weeks. The elevated urinary protein excretion and plasma creatinine due to the induction of Heymann nephritis were significantly reduced by fucoidan at doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg. The results indicated that fucoidan has a renoprotective effect on active Heymann nephritis and is a promising therapeutic agent for nephritis. Copyright (c) 2005 John Wiley F Sons, Ltd.

A new species and a key to known species of the genus Atractomorpha (Orthoptera, Acridoidea, Pyrgomorphidae) from China

A new species, Atractomorpha taiwanensis sp. n. from Taiwan, China, is described in this paper. The new species is similar to A. micropenna Zheng, 1992, but it differs from the latter by the following: lateral lobe of pronotum without membranous area near posterior margin; the tegmina strongly shortened, not reaching ( in male) the midpoint of hind femur; and wings very small, not reaching the midpoint of tegmina. A key to all known species of the genus Atractomorpha from China is given. The type specimens are deposited in the Museum of Hebei University, China.

PUMA760基于红外接近觉控制与编程实验系统

本文介绍 PUMA760 工业机器人基于红外接近觉传感器信号控制与编程实验系统。提出了搜索信号极值确定基准相对位置的方法,在位置控制系统中加入了基于传感器信号控制的指令,使 PUMA760完成了快速寻找、接近、定位和抓取非完全固定方位和高度的工件的动作.